Goss: Joliet Catholic graduate Terry Gannon broadcasting from Rio Olympics for Golf Channel

The last time golf was included in the Olympic Games was 1904.

Now, 112 years later, it returns for the Rio de Janeiro Games that begin this week. Terry Gannon could not be happier.

After broadcasting numerous huge sporting events for years, the 1981 Joliet Catholic graduate joined the Golf Channel in 2010 as a play-by-play announcer for PGA Tour events. He also covers figure skating and rugby for NBC.

When golf was added to the Olympic menu, Gannon was a natural fit to help anchor the coverage.

“It wasn’t a surprise to me to get the assignment, but you never know what NBC was going to do with it,” Gannon said. “So it was something I was very happy with.

“Golf is special to me because, 1. it was so long ago that it was in the Olympics, and 2. I have a passion for the game year-round. The first time in over a century – that’s really cool. That gets me excited that I have the opportunity to broadcast it.”

Gannon and Steve Sands will rotate play-by-play duties on the Golf Channel during the men’s competition Aug. 11 to 14 and the women’s competition Aug. 17 to 20.

“We will be on the air from 7:30-4 Brazil time every day, so they’ll be long days,” Gannon said. “On the men’s side, I’ll work with Nick Faldo the first half of the day and Johnny Miller the second half. Annika Sorenstam and Judy Rankin will work with me on the women’s side.

“It’s all on the Golf Channel, and they’ll take pieces and put that on NBC.”

FOURTH OLYMPICS

A basketball and baseball standout in high school, Gannon played college basketball for legendary coach Jim Valvano at North Carolina State and was a key member of the Wolfpack’s 1983 national championship team.

As a broadcaster, Gannon is the ultimate jack of all trades. He has covered the NBA, WNBA, British Open, U.S. Open and college football and college basketball for ESPN. He joined ABC Sports in 1991 as a commentator for college basketball. He also hosted ABC’s figure skating coverage, including the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, European Championships and World Championships.

Gannon was the studio host for ABC Sports’ coverage of the 2002 FIFA World Cup, 2003 FIFA Women’s World Cup and hosted the 2004 Indianapolis 500, the 2006 Belmont Stakes and WTA Professional Tennis. For three years, he hosted the Tour de France and was the play-by-play announcer at the Little League World Series.

Although golf at Rio is something fresh, he also has worked three other Olympics.

“At Vancouver (in 2010), I hosted a show for five hours every day,” he said. “Jimmy Roberts and I did it, and we had people like Pikaboo Street and Eddie Olczyk joining us. I did rowing and kayaking at London (in 2012) and figure skating at Sochi (in 2014). I’ll have figure skating at South Korea (in 2018).”

It is work, yes. Yet the Olympics mean so much more to Gannon.

“I’ve done the Olympics a number of times, and I’m a true fan,” he said. “I get tickets to everything I can get my hands on. Lisa (his wife) and our kids (daughter Madailein and son Jake) are coming down for a week. It will be their first Olympics.

“In London, when I went off the air, I went over to Wimbledon to see the (Roger) Federer against (Andy) Murray gold medal match. I saw the U.S.-Japan women’s gold medal soccer game at Wembley Stadium.”

GOLF BELONGS

Golf, of course, has not been reinstated in the Olympics without a dose of controversy. Gannon understands that, but said the sport definitely belongs.

“I don’t see why golf wouldn’t be in the Olympics,” he said. “It’s a perfect fit. It’s gotten some negative press with big names like Jason Day, Dustin Johnson, Jordan Spieth and Rory McIlroy saying they won’t play because of the Zika virus and all that’s going on with that; but once it takes place, I think it’s going to be surprisingly good.”

The USA men’s roster will include Bubba Watson, Rickie Fowler, Patrick Reed and Matt Kuchar.

“Going in, I feel the people there want to be there,” said Gannon, who has been inducted into the Joliet Area Sports Hall of Fame and the Joliet Catholic Academy Hall of Champions. “Now they have an opportunity to win a gold medal. Golfers have not grown up dreaming about getting a gold medal put around their neck, but now they have that chance.”

The format also has come under scrutiny. There will be 60 golfers on the men’s side and 60 on the women’s side, each in a 72-hole, stroke-play competition.

The top 15 players in the official world golf rankings are eligible, with a maximum of four players allowed from a given nation. Outside the top 15, each nation is allowed a maximum of two players. If a country qualifies two or more players within the top 15, additional players are not eligible.

Medals will be awarded on an individual basis, although Gannon noted the format could be reworked before subsequent Olympics.

“Some people have picked apart the format,” he said. “But players we may not know will be there, and in the long run, that will help grow the game. Plenty of countries are starting to fund golf now. That’s a big part of having it in the Olympics.”

GREAT STORIES

Don’t be surprised if an unforgettable golf story emerges.

“Every Olympics, you come across certain people who become stars that represent what the Olympics are all about,” Gannon said. “That long shot, the underdog. You have a chance in Rio for that to happen for the men and women.

“I remember there was a rower in London who almost didn’t exist in the eyes of his country. He was about a half-mile behind everyone else, but he was determined to finish. To see 20,000 people going crazy for this guy just to finish the race, that was a great story. There always are great stories like that.”

Gannon is primed to help broadcast more of them. He will leave his Los Angeles home for Rio on Saturday.

“Just being part of the Olympics is so special,” he said. “There were a lot of years I was not involved with the Olympics because my network did not have it. Now, this will be my fourth Olympics.

“Those are three weeks when the world stops. You get one chance to watch the summer games and one chance to watch the winter games every four years, and the world does watch.”

Golf fans everywhere will have the opportunity to see and hear Gannon at his best.